Catch and release
In the United Kingdom, catch and release has been performed for more than a century by coarse fishermen in order to prevent target species from disappearing in heavily fished waters.
In Scotland, the River Dee operates a full catch and release policy for salmon, grilse and sea trout.
Lee Wulff, a New York-based fly angler, author and film maker, promoted catch and release as early as 1936 with the phrase "Game fish are too valuable to be caught only once.
"[2] Don Martinez a West Yellowstone, Montana, fly shop owner, promoted catch and release in his 1930–40s newsletters sent to Eastern anglers.
[citation needed] In Ireland, catch and release has been used as a conservation tool for Atlantic salmon and sea trout fisheries since 2003.
[7] This leaves no legal basis for catch and release due to its argued inherent lack of "good reason", and thus personal fishing is solely allowed for immediate food consumption.
Additionally, it is against the law to release fish back into the water if they are above minimum size requirements and are not a protected species or in closed season.
[8][9] Into the 21st century, there has been an emphasis on the development and refinement of science-based practices to increase the likelihood that released fish will survive (e.g., see research by Steven J. Cooke).
[citation needed] Opponents of catch and release argue that fish are highly evolved vertebrates that share many of the same neurological structures that in humans are associated with pain perception.
[17] During an Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation study, up to 43 percent of fish released after being caught died within six days as a result of inadequate holding and weigh in procedures during tournaments.
Fish with barotrauma will have their enormously swollen swim-bladder protruding from their mouth, bulging eyeballs, and often sustain other, more subtle but still very serious injuries.
The common practice has been to deflate the swim bladder by pricking it with a thin sharp object before attempting to release the fish.
